Lemonade by LEMONICA, a leading lemonade brand in Japan, is offering franchise opportunities in the UK, as part of its expansion into Europe.
Established in Kanazawa, Japan in 2017, the business quickly expanded with almost 100 LEMONICA shops operating across Japan currently. An estimated 5 million cups of its lemonade consumed in Japan in 2021 and a typical LEMONICA kiosk sell two to three hundred cups of lemonade a day.
The brand opened a popup shop in London’s Soho area to evaluate the viability of investment into the UK market. It said it will open a permanent shop in London if it reaches the goal of selling 10,000 lemonade drinks from the popup shop, which will be operating till August.
The brand, which has been expanding its franchise operations outside Japan for some time, has exhibited at last month’s British & International Franchise Exhibition in London, and is offering franchise opportunities around Europe.
Lemonica's lemonade is not only lemon juice with syrup added, but is original lemonade made from whole lemons. The lemonade base, which is the key to the flavor, is painstakingly prepared at their own lemonade factory, using a special blender to extract and blend the different tastes and flavors from the lemon peel, the white sponge part under the peel, the pith, the thin peel, the juice, the pulp, and all the other parts, uncompressed.
In addition, Lemonica always offers more than 20 varieties of products and a limited seasonal menu that includes the sugar-free NO.9 Lemonade, seasonal fruit juices such as strawberry and kiwi, and hot drinks using tea leaves that go well with lemon.
Leading hard seltzer brand White Claw has launched what could potentially be the world’s smallest house party pop-up.
The mini house structure, measuring just three metres tall, two metres wide, and two metres deep, is coming to London, Manchester and Liverpool through November and December.
The campaign follows new research by the brand which revealed that new-age partying is all about connecting with others, socialising and smaller, more intimate settings.
A third (35%) consider a house party to be their preferred way of socialising with friends, while a third see them as an attractive prospect due to the cost-of-living crisis. It also emerged 48 per cent prefer more intimate surroundings.
The poll of 2,000 UK adults aged 18 to 45, conducted by OnePoll, unveiled that our newfound love of house parties is down to them feeling ‘cosy and safe’ (58%), the ease of having meaningful conversations (58%), and their affordability (52%).
Plus, nearly half (47%) love knowing most, if not all, of the guests, and no one’s complaining about skipping the drink lines (43%)!
The average adult has hosted two house parties in the last 12 months and has attended three at others’ houses, and half of those polled would like to attend more than they currently do.
However, four in 10 Brits are put off hosting their own house party due to the clean up afterwards, while others are deterred by potential damages (25%) and neighbours complaining about noise (23%).
23 per cent said hosting a house party is too stressful and time consuming, and 21 per cent went as far as to say they feel the social pressure of hosting a party outweighs the fun of it.
The White Claw pop-up looks to deliver the nation exactly what they want: intimate house parties with no strings attached.
The space squeezes just 6 people and is kitted out with a button to kickstart a mini-disco, photobooth, mock fireplace, leather armchair and homely décor, creating the ultimate mini house party hotspot.
Sarah, 26, of Croydon, who got to experience the set-up, said: "I love going to house parties but hate hosting them, they can be such a faff and I’m always worried about my neighbours.
“It was so great when this party turned out to be something completely different. I could actually talk to people and get to know them, without shouting over loud music.
“It felt like so much more of a community, like everyone was there to connect. Honestly it was such a refreshing experience!”
The nation’s shifting attitudes brings with it a new era of house-party rules, as revealed by the OnePoll survey. The modern rules that should be followed including not entering bedrooms without permission (40%), not bringing uninvited guests (38%) and not pinching other people’s drinks (31%).
Other essential etiquette tips were to bring your own alcohol (32%), dress for comfort, not for show (29%) and help to tidy up before you leave (27%).
Michael Dean, spokesperson for White Claw, added: “We always knew we’re a nation of house party lovers, but it’s interesting to see that Brits are now really interested in making connections with others when partying.
“While it’s fun to attend a house party, we know they can be stressful to host if people don’t follow all the rules.
“After bringing Brits the coolest party-stop corner shop last year, the Claw-ner Shop, this year we’re answering the nation’s prayers and offering another once-in-a-lifetime experience: the World’s Smallest House Party. From your hard seltzer or vodka, right down to your party location, we’ve got your night covered.”
Hitting shelves later this month, Chicago Town has announced the launch of two frozen desserts in a move to elevate big nights in for family and friends.
Expanding its premium tiered Ultimate range, both the Cookie Bars and Chocolate Brownies are suitable for cooking in the oven and microwave and directly target those looking to go to town on the Ultimate Pizza Night In.
With meal deals continuing to prove popular amongst takeout, retail chilled and food-to-go offerings, Chicago Town’s Pizza Night-in meal deal brings added convenience coming straight-from-the-freezer, with the desserts sitting alongside its Pizzas and Garlic Bread offerings.
Chicago Town’s Cookie Bars, 234g, MRRSP £3.95
The all-new Cookie Bars elevate a takeaway favourite, with four individual bars oozing with chocolate goodness. Combining milk and dark chocolate chunks and topped with milk chocolate chunks and pink and white marshmallows, Chicago Town’s new Cookie Bars serve up optimum gooey indulgence.
Chicago Town’s Chocolate Brownies, 260g, MRRSP £3.95
Topped with a caramelised cookie crumb and inspired by rumour and legend that Brownies originate from Chicago, Chicago Town has put an indulgent spin on an American classic. With four brownies per pack, there are plenty to go round.
“It’s an exciting year for us at Chicago Town,” said Marketing Manager Rachel Bradshaw. “Not only have we unveiled our £4.5m brand campaign but we’ve launched four new products across pizzas and sides and we’re now launching desserts.
“Knowing that our customers love a pizza night in, we’ve gone to town on the occasion, launching our two Ultimate sweet treats. With meal deals continuing to be a fan favourite, this gave us the opportunity to create an epic £10 bundle for those getting together to go to town on Pizza Night. After all, every Pizza Night In is worthy of a sweet dessert!”
The campaign will be supported by a two-week Meta campaign later this month.
British sweet-maker Swizzels is increasing production to meet the growing demand for vegan sweets in time for Veganuary 2025.
Popular products like Variety Bags, Drumstick Choos, and Refreshers Choos are among Swizzels’ vegan sweets anticipated to see a significant rise in popularity as consumers continue to seek plant-based options from established brands.
The sweet maker urges retailers to stock up on its expanding vegan range as demand for vegan confectionery continues to grow. In 2024, vegan claims in sugar confectionery have risen by 33 per cent, compared to just 17 per cent in 2019, reflecting the increasing consumer preference for plant-based treats.
With over 25 million participants worldwide in January 2024, Veganuary’s growing popularity highlights the importance of retailers stocking well-known brands to entice customers looking to explore plant-based options.
Swizzels’ vegan range is a popular addition to any retailer’s sugar confectionery selection. The company has also seen a 34.1 per cent increase in its vegan Countlines, including Drumstick Choos, Love Hearts and Refreshers Choos, as well as an 38 per cent increase in its Hanging Bags range and Clipstrips, including Luscious Lollies, Scrumptious Sweets, and Curious Chews.
The sweet maker's popular vegan Drumstick Choos and Refreshers Choos are now available in PMP formats, with a £1.15 MRSP for 115g bags and 12 x 135g SRP.
"Vegan sweets are growing in popularity, with vegan claims now way more common in sugar and confectionery products than they were five years ago," said Clare Newton, Trade Marketing Manager.
"Swizzels has long been ahead of the trend, offering a vegan-friendly range well before the current surge in demand. Today, nearly all of our products are fully vegan, catering to a diverse customer base and helping boost sales for the retailers and wholesalers we work with.
“We are at the forefront of the vegan confectionery movement, offering an exciting range of sweets that deliver the familiar taste and texture of classic treats, all with a plant-based twist!
"Our vegan range is available all year-round, ensuring customers can enjoy their favourite sweets anytime, not just during Veganuary.”
In its sixth year running a campaign in support of Veganuary, Swizzels has made what started as a Veganuary-only movement a year-round trend with the key focus message: "All These, All Year, All Vegan", to promote the extensive range of vegan sweets.
Purity Soft Drinks, makers of leading fruit juice and juice drink brands Juice Burst and firefly, is expanding distribution for Juice Burst Apple. The brand’s bestselling flavour has confirmed additional distribution across Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Morrisons Daily stores; and is launching in Iceland for the first time in January 2025.
The new listings follow the soaring popularity of apple flavoured drinks along with the brand’s investment in its biggest marketing campaign to date. Juice Burst Apple has overtaken Orange as the brand’s bestselling variant, growing to become the number one apple juice SKU in drink now. Its nationwide summer campaign – Punchy To The Core – amplified the flavour to over 30 million UK adults and was seen 174 million times through a combination of digital and out of home advertising.
HFSS-compliant and SDIL-exempt with no added sugar, and containing one of your five-a-day in every bottle, the popularity of Juice Burst Apple has been attributed to the increasing number of health-conscious consumers post-pandemic. The brand has grown by 60 per cent since 2019 to reach a value of £80m in recent months.
“We entered 2024 with big ambitions for Juice Burst Apple," said Sarah Baldwin, CEO of Purity Soft Drinks Ltd. "Research we commissioned found that when choosing a soft drink, health is now the second most important consideration after taste, with 41 per cent of juice drinkers choosing a product because of its health credentials and 36 per cent preferring products that provide one of their five-a-day.
“We’re delighted by the success we’ve seen for Apple in the market, and the vote of confidence shown by our retailer partners who are stocking the brand in more stores for their shoppers.”
The announcement is the latest in a series of growth and development successes for Purity Soft Drinks. Catering to consumer demand, the company recently expanded its latest flavour Juice Burst Peach Ice Tea into a larger 500ml format, and rolled out 100 per cent recyclable packaging across the entire Juice Burst range this summer.
To celebration the release of Wicked, in cinemas now, Butterkist is supporting retailers to drive footfall and sales with exciting in-store activations.
The initiative will see a select number of convenience stores across the UK involved in a store takeover to engage and excite local shoppers and drive awareness of the partnership, while delivering growth for the popcorn segment.
Each participating store has installed new Wicked- and Butterkist-themed POS including an eye-catching stock-holding arch, a Butterkist cauldron, shelf toppers, floor vinyls, dump bins and wobblers. To grab shoppers’ attention, retailers have also received cardboard cut-outs featuring A-list celebrities Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, both stars of the film.
As part of the Wicked partnership, Butterkist is running an exciting on-pack promotion across all Butterkist £1.25 PMPs and core sharing SKUs until 31 December. Featuring Wicked themed packaging designs, the on-pack promotion offers consumers the chance to win a “Thrillifying adventure to London” with five prizes up for grabs.
Alongside this, KP Snacks is running a retailer incentive to celebrate the film's release. Retailers who purchase cases of all four Butterkist £1.25 PMPs (Sweet, Salted, Toffee and Sweet & Salty) featuring the Wicked on-pack promotion will be in with the chance to win 1 of 35 TV tech bundles.
“Perfectly timed to tap into the excitement around the movie launch, the store takeovers bring Butterkist —a brand known for being synonomous with in-home movie occasions, into the spotlight," said Stuart Graham, Head of Convenience and Impulse at KP Snacks. "The eye-catching displays, theatre and POS aim to grab consumer attention and boost the retailer’s local profile and sales.”
Sue Nithyanandan, Costcutter Epsom in Surrey – and the new Asian Trader Businesswoman of the Year – says, “It was fantastic to work with KP Snacks on this activation, coinciding with the launch of the new Wicked movie. We have had really excellent feedback from our customers who were happy to see all the theatre in-store, especially with so much excitement surrounding the film. We’ve also seen a real uplift in popcorn sales as a result.”